Our recent module on hyperlinked communities was eye-opening in several ways, and it was hard to pick just one article to speak on. The main takeaway I got was that we need to always be inclusive, welcoming, and respectful to all – and to host open conversations, on sometimes harder topics. Sometimes people are put into challenging situations and do not know where to go or who to talk to about it. For instance, in the TEDx Talk by Ciara Eastell, she mentions a man who came to the library who was grieving after his wife’s death and needed the help of the librarian, because no one else could help.
There’s also the Richland Library in South Carolina, who hosted the “Let’s Talk Race” conversations, after the trial of Dylann Roof, the man who murdered 9 African American churchgoers in a city near them. It left the community in unrest and created tension, and by having open and honest (and respectful) conversations about race, it helped their community heal and understand together (Dixon, 2017).
Yes, it is fun and connecting to have games, makerspaces, and crafts – but it’s also crucial to have spaces that invite difficult topics and harder conversations to help people heal. We need to host open conversation with our community members, one-on-one, and in groups. These conversations can break down walls and biases, or they can just help cure someone’s loneliness and need for social connection. By doing this, we can connect with our patrons on a deeper level and get them the help that they need, by just being able to let out what is bothering them. “Instead of asking people about libraries, we need to ask people about their lives” (Schmidt, 2016).
References:
Dixon, J. A. (2017, October 23). Convening community conversations: Programming. Library Journal. https://www.libraryjournal.com/story/convening-community-conversations-programming
Eastell, C. (2019, June 13). How libraries change lives TEDx Talk. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tvt-lHZBUwU
Richland Library’s “Let’s talk race” series. SC Humanities. (2021, April 28). https://schumanities.org/richland-librarys-lets-talk-race-community-initiative/
Schmidt, A. (2016, May 4). Asking the right questions: The user experience. Library Journal. https://www.libraryjournal.com/story/asking-the-right-questions-the-user-experience
Hi Millicent,
when I listened to Ciara Eastell’s TEDx Talk, that part where she discussed the mourning man looking for a how-to-handle grief book hit me right in the feels. Libraries should be definite safe spaces for having those tough conversations that need to be discussed, even if uncomfortable. Thanks for including the YouTube video and very happy to know that, through constructive and open dialogue, the community was able to heal. I’m including an article I read in a class last year that goes along with your blog in case you want to check it out: https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/2016/04/15/perspectives-islam-montana/
@inabookbind Thank you for highlighting discussions and displays regarding death. It seems to be something that people feel weird about talking about. I’ll dive in and say I just updated my will and made some decisions about my health etc for the future. It was absolutely freeing to put everything in place. I hope that is not weird!